Chapter 58

Chapter 58

WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?

Confusion abounds with respect both to the content and presentation of the Gospel of the grace of God. Some do not present it purely; some do not present it clearly; some do not present it sincerely. But because God is gracious, He often gives light and faith in spite of our imprecise witness.

I. SOME FALLACIES IN THE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL

A. The Fallacy that the Gospel Primarily Concerns Other Than Sin

There can be no Good News for the person who does not sense that he needs Good News. And there can be no sense of need without some realization of sin. Of course, sin has many symptoms that can alert an individual to the basic problem, sin. Therefore, a Gospel presentation can focus on lack of joy or peace or the need to have help in solving problems, but those are symptoms of the sin that alienates from God. Nevertheless, one does not need to be saved in order to have joy or peace or the solution to problems. He needs to be saved in order to have sins forgiven. Lack of joy is not what bars people from heaven. Sin is. The Gospel believed solves the sin problem.

B. The Fallacy that There are Different Gospels for Different Age-Groups

There is not one Gospel for children, another for young people, yet another for adults, one for unchurched people, while another for those with a church background. There is one Gospel. There may be different ways of explaining the Gospel to different groups, but unless the content is the same, those different explanations may create different gospels. Different vocabulary may be indicated, but those different words must convey the same Gospel.

C. The Fallacy that the Truth is in Other Than the Word of God

Experience can confirm or deny truth, but it does not create infallible truth. Neither does archaeology. Neither does fulfilled prophecy, for the prophecies of the Bible were true before they were ever fulfilled. Neither does apologetics. These approaches have their place, but only in the Word do we have absolute truth. Like the apostles, we must preach the Word () and reason out of the Scriptures (17:2).

Acts 13:5 ESV

5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them.

D. The Fallacy that Cleverness Will Convict

If the convicting ministry of the Spirit is to set the truth of the Gospel before the unsaved person in such a light that he must acknowledge it as truth (whether he believes it or not), then this must be done by the Spirit, not by my cleverness. Of course, our presentation should be well prepared and well presented, but these in themselves do not guarantee that anyone will be convinced. God must do that.

E. The Fallacy that Charm Will Assure Results

Insofar as we can exercise control, we should not be offensive as to dress, speech, or culture, but the moment we announce the Gospel we take on the offense of the Cross (). The message is a stumbling block; the messenger should not be. But even though he is not, this will not guarantee results. Charm does not convert people.

Galatians 5:11 ESV

11 But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed.

F. The Fallacy that Procedures Produce Conversions

Procedures do produce results, but results are not always the same as conversions. Pressure can produce results; music can hypnotize; settings can intoxicate; and stories can move; but none of these necessarily bring conversions. A good test for any Gospel message is this: Did the speaker give his listeners something to believe, not did he give them something to do.

II. SOME FALLACIES IN STATING THE CONTENT OF THE GOSPEL

A. The Fallacy of Adding Baptism

Though an important Christian ordinance, baptism is not a part of the Gospel. To include it in the Gospel is to add a work to the grace of God. However, some feel certain verses do make baptism a requirement to be saved.

1. . The original ending of Mark’s Gospel is the subject of much debate. It is doubtful that what we designate as verse 16 was part of the genuine close of the Gospel. At best, it would be unwise to base any doctrine on the content of verses 9–20. However, it is also possible that if verse 16 is a part of the inspired text that the reference is to baptism of the Spirit. After all, the Lord would have spoken at almost the same time as He spoke concerning the imminent baptizing ministry of the Spirit.

Mark 16:16 ESV

16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Mark 16:16 ESV

16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Acts 1:5 ESV

5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

2. . Baptismal regenerationists understand this verse to teach that repentance and baptism lead to the forgiveness of sins. Unquestionably baptism was a clear proof in New Testament times of conversion, whether it be conversion to Judaism, to John the Baptist’s message, or to Christianity. To refuse to be baptized raised a legitimate doubt as to the sincerity of the profession. Therefore, when the Jewish crowd asked Peter what they must do, he quite naturally said to repent (change their minds about Jesus of Nazareth) and be baptized (give clear proof of that change).

Acts 2:38 ESV

38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Though it is true that exegetically the text may be understood to say that baptism is unto (eis) the forgiveness of sins, it is equally true that it may say that baptism is not for the purpose of the forgiveness of sins but because of forgiveness (that had already taken place at repentance). Eis is clearly used with this meaning in —they repented at (on the basis of, or because of) the preaching of Jonah. It certainly cannot mean in that verse that they repented with a view to the preaching of Jonah. So may be understood that the people should repent and then be baptized because their sins were forgiven.1

Matthew 12:41 ESV

41 The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

Acts 2:38 ESV

38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

3. . The verse contains four segments: (a) arise (which is a participle, arising); (b) be baptized (an imperative); (c) wash away your sins (another imperative); and (d) calling on the name of the Lord (another participle). To make the verse teach baptism as necessary for salvation necessitates connecting parts b and c, be baptized and wash away. But rather than being connected to each other, each of those two commands is actually connected with a participle. Arising is necessary before baptism, and calling before sins can be washed away. Thus the verse should be read this way: arising, be baptized; wash away your sins, calling on the Lord. The verse correctly understood does not teach baptismal regeneration.

Acts 22:16 ESV

16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’

B. The Fallacy of Misunderstanding Repentance

Repentance means a genuine change of mind that affects the life in some way. Like other significant theological terms it must be defined specifically by asking a further question, namely, Change the mind about what? Unsaved people can truly repent but without being saved, as, for example, to change the mind about a bad habit and to break that habit as a result. Christians can repent of specific sins and stop doing them (; —notice that in this verse sorrow leads to repentance, but it is not necessarily the same as repentance). And unsaved people can repent unto salvation. This saving repentance has to involve a change of mind about Jesus Christ so that whatever a person thought of Him before, he changes his mind and trusts Him to be his Savior. That is the only kind or content of repentance that saves (; ; ). However, saving repentance may be preceded by a repentance concerning sin (which activates an individual’s sense of need for forgiveness) or a repentance toward God (which alerts him to the fact that he has offended a holy God and therefore needs a way to appease Him). This aspect of repentance (like ) is still not saving unless it is accompanied by faith in Christ ().

Revelation 2:5 ESV

5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

2 Corinthians 7:9 ESV

9 As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.

Acts 2:38 ESV

38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 17:30 ESV

30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,

2 Peter 3:9 ESV

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

John 16:8–11 ESV

8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

Acts 20:21 ESV

21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

C. The Fallacy of Making Surrender of Life a Part of the Gospel

1. The question. The question is simply this: Does one have to make Christ Lord of his life or be willing to do so in order to be saved? One yes answer puts it this way.

The lordship view expressly states the necessity of acknowledging Christ as the Lord and Master of one’s life in the act of receiving Him as Savior. These are not two different, sequential acts (or successive steps), but rather one act of pure, trusting faith. It takes little theological acumen to discern the base differences between the lordship and nonlordship views of the presentation of the Gospel.

2. In the same vein, Arthur W. Pink wrote:

In the same vein, Arthur W. Pink wrote:

Something more than “believing” is necessary to salvation. A heart that is steeled in rebellion against God cannot savingly believe: it must first be broken.… No one can receive Christ as his Saviour while he rejects Him as Lord! It is true the preacher adds that the one who accepts Christ should also surrender to Him as Lord, but he once spoils it by assertion that though the convert fails to do so nevertheless heaven is sure to him. That is one of the devil’s lies.3

Simply stated the question is: Does the lack of commitment to the lordship of Christ over the years of one’s life mean a lack of saving faith? Or, as Boice asked, “Is ‘faith’ minus commitment a true biblical faith?”

4 Boice says no, it is not.

Notice that the question is not whether believers will sin, or if they will bear fruit. All believers will bear some fruit in their Christian lives. Nor is it a question of whether believers should decide who will direct their lives. That is an essential question for spiritual growth, and some apparently decide that issue when they believe and some do not. The question is: Is commitment of life a necessary part of faith and thus of the Gospel?

2. Some examples. The Bible furnishes some clear examples of people who were saved but who lacked commitment. These are not examples only of sins committed after salvation (though they include such), but they demonstrate saving faith without commitment.

Remember the life of Lot. It scarcely qualifies as an example of commitment at any point, yet the New Testament declares that he was a righteous person (). If we only had the Old Testament record, we might seriously question that he was righteous before God.

2 Peter 2:7 ESV

7 and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked

Observe also the condition of the believers at Ephesus. Paul ministered in that city more than two years. Some believed at the beginning of his ministry; others, later on. They were converted from a lifestyle that included devotion to magical arts based on the gibberish written on the statue of Diana in the temple at Ephesus. After believing in the Lord, many, if not most, of those believers (and undebatably states they were believers) still continued their superstitious practices. It would be wishful thinking to imagine they did not know such practices were wrong when they accepted Christ and during the two years that many continued to do them. But not until the end of Paul’s ministry in Ephesus did the believers finally become convicted about this and confess their sins and burn their books of magic. Theologically, then, this says that there were people at Ephesus who became believers in Christ knowing they should give up their use of magic but who did not (some for as long as two years), but who nevertheless were born again. Their salvation did not depend on faith plus submission to the lordship of Christ over their use of magic.

Acts 19:18 ESV

18 Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices.

3. Some observations. This lordship teaching fails to distinguish salvation from discipleship and makes requirements for discipleship prerequisites for salvation. Our Lord distinguished the two (). This teaching elevates one of the many aspects of the person of Christ (Master over life) in making it a part of the Gospel. Why not require faith in His kingship? Or in the fact that He is Judge of all, or that He was the Creator? Though my view has been dubbed “easy believism,” it is not easy to believe, because what we ask the unsaved person to believe is not easy. We ask that he trust a person who lived two thousand years ago, whom he can only know through the Bible, to forgive his sins. We are asking that he stake his eternal destiny on this. Remember the example of Evangelist Jesus. He did not require the Samaritan woman to set her sinful life in order, or even be willing to, so that she could be saved. He did not set out before her what would be expected by way of changes in her life if she believed. He simply said she needed to know who He is and to ask for the gift of eternal life ().5

John 4:10 ESV

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

Luke 14:16–33 ESV

16 But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. 17 And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ 19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ 20 And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21 So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ 22 And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. 24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’ ” 25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (pp. 387–392). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.